Editor’s note — The copy has been updated to reflect new information from police.
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. (DC News Now) — Police in Fairfax County said seven teens were involved in a crash that left six with life-threatening injuries at around 5:00 a.m.
Police said in a post on the X platform that officers were on the scene of a single-vehicle crash in the 2600 block of Pioneer Ln. in Merrifield, near the intersection of Shreve Rd.
The driver of the vehicle was arrested with driving under the influence. The six passengers were taken to a hospital with injuries considered life-threatening.
Five of the six teens hurt were ejected from the vehicle. The sixth was trapped and had to be extracted, according to police.
Police gave an update from the scene Monday morning. Officers said that speed and alcohol were factors in the crash.
They said all the teens were between the ages of 14-17 years old. All of the juveniles were local and said to be known to one another. All of the juveniles remained on scene until police arrived.
Neighbors nearby tell DC News Now they’ve had longtime concerns over safety along Shreve Rd.
“It’s exactly what we were afraid of. It’s why we don’t let our kids play in the front yard here,” said Alex Cadotte, who lives right by the crash site. “I don’t even feel comfortable mowing my grass out here, cars come over the hill extremely fast.”
Police say the top of that hill is where the driver lost control, striking a tree and tumbling into a neighbor’s yard.
“It’s a blind hill when you’re coming over at about 40 to 45 miles per hour,” said Cadotte.
He says he and his neighbors have pushed for VDOT’s help to make this stretch of Shreve Rd safer.
After a pedestrian was hit and killed about a mile up the road in 2019, VDOT performed a safety study along the Shreve Road Corridor.
Cadotte says that’s when changes were made along other parts of the road,but not enough was done along this specific stretch.
“How many more people have to die in order for them to do something here?” said Cadotte.
